U.S. stocks close higher as PCE report eases inflation concerns
Mar 01, 2025
Albany [New York], March 1: U.S. stocks rebounded on Friday after a cooling inflation report eased investors' concerns.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 601.41 points, or 1.39 percent, to 43,840.91. The S&P 500 added 92.93 points, or 1.59 percent, to 5,954.5. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 302.86 points, or 1.63 percent, to 18,847.28.
All of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with financials and consumer discretionary leading the gainers by adding 2.07 percent and 1.80 percent, respectively. Real estate posted the weakest growth, up by 0.81 percent.
The geopolitical uncertainty drove up Wall Street's fear gauge, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), which climbed 4.8 percent to 22.15, its highest level since late January.
"This is still a very news-driven market and any hints of escalation, or no resolution with Russia and Ukraine, should be expected to add to volatility, in an already volatile week," said Larry Tentarelli, founder and CEO of Blue Chip Daily Trend Report.
"From a market perspective, I would expect these higher volatility newsbytes at any time, until resolved," Tentarelli said.
Meanwhile, U.S. inflation eased slightly in January, even as concerns grew over President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs, according to a Commerce Department report released Friday.
The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation, rose 0.3 percent for the month, bringing the annual rate to 2.5 percent. Excluding food and energy, the core PCE also climbed 0.3 percent in January, with the annual rate reaching 2.6 percent. This marked a decline from December's upwardly revised 2.9 percent level, with overall inflation easing by 0.1 percentage point.
The data aligned with Dow Jones estimates and suggest that Fed Chair Jerome Powell and policymakers are likely to maintain their current stance on interest rates for now.
Following the report, futures traders slightly raised the odds of a June quarter percentage point rate cut, with the market-implied probability now just above 70 percent, according to the CME Group's FedWatch gauge
Source: Xinhua News Agency
